Waste is waste whatever the department mate.
And it's not just or primarily about wages, it's about what they provide for the wages.
If you're in a job that rarely or doesn't bother to set targets and offer bonuses for exceeding the targets, you enter a 'comfort zone'.
I'd go so far as to suggest that a complete review of every single employee, their job specification and salary package be carried out and changes implemented to improve the productivity of every department. And if that meant reducing basic salaries but, offering substantial bonuses based upon exceeding targets, then that's well worth considering.
The more the people produce, the more they can earn - exceeding targets pays for itself.
For example... car salespeople are paid a relative pittance of a basic salary because they're incentivised to sell add-ons... accessories, finance packages etc.
You walk into any car showroom and after the initial chat about the car, the first thing they want to talk to you about is 'and over how long would you like to finance the car?' Because they're incentivised to sell a finance package. They earn more from the finance company than they do for actually selling the car.
Tell the salesperson you want to pay cash and watch his face sink... 'cos his commission has just evaporated.